Martín y la pirata Candela

(Martín and Candela, the pirate girl)

Summary:

Every night, after his mother kisses him good night and turns the lights off, Martín starts to dream. One night, he receives an unexpected visit: Candela, the most adventurous pirate of the kingdom of dreams. Since that day, Martin will live exciting adventures aboard the sailing boat Cosquillas.

Comment:

This is a bilingual Spanish/English edition, with original collage type illustrations in which blue, green, and red colours abound. It presents a woman in a common male role, a pirate’s. The ship can be interpreted as the path of life whereas the destination desired by Martin (Mount Everest) as the target that we can achieve if we fight courageously and honestly, like Candela the pirate does. Beyond the theme and symbols, the strength of this volume lies in its aesthetic value as it includes synaesthesia that combining creativity and description of emotions (kisses of colours, hugs of red liquorice).